Impending Doom. . . . How do we make decisions? Why do we react in a certain
way in a given situation? What really influences how we behave in a crisis
situation? Does experience with emergency situations and/or knowledge of emergency
medical techniques influence one's reaction in a catastrophe? Students and
teachers join in examining how they react given a sudden impending cataclysmic
event. Thirty-two students share common English, world history, and science
teachers. Teachers and students create an interdisciplinary study during this
ten week unit. Conversations in one class are encouraged to continue in the
next one. English class directs attention to how people relate to transitions
in life and what causes them to react in certain predictable ways to emergency
situations. World history curricula examines past cataclysmic events and highlight
how people survived in those times; develops contact with experts in survival
techniques; examines theories about mass extinction as well as speculating
about future cataclysmic events and related survival strategies. Science instruction
explores the Solar System; certifies students in CPR and/or First Aid; exposes
students to emergency services such as ambulance and police ride-along programs;
and explores the Internet for resources about survival.

Launch Point

Science star date one finds the sophomore class meandering across campus
(after reading the note on the classroom door to go to the Library Computer
Lab). These adventurers are used to doing some unusual activities to become
immersed in a new topic strand. As the students jostle for their preferred
computer cubicle, the Mission Commander welcomes the "Survivors" to space.
"The Last Frontier." Students are instructed to don their headsets (earphones
connected to the CPU sound port) and tune in (Go to the URL: http://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/dsn/).
These space cadets find an instructional encounter where they pass the retinal
scan by pressing their eye to the monitor and sign-in with the thumbprint
at the portal to space. Entry through the portal brings the space cadets to
a pre-transport briefing where they are given the mission objectives for this
unit as well as some safety rules (rules of group behavior, participation,
and self-government). Launch brings the space cadets into contact with a web
quest activity where they review the solar system in detail. The stage is
set for the introduction of asteroids, comets, meteoroids, aged space stations,
and other space junk! The instances of junk from space hitting the earth are
presented as a series of hotlinks to NASA Websites. Students record URLs of
interest to them in their electronic journal that may be of value in later
reference in their quest to survive encounters of the cataclysmic kind! The
Mission Commander provides a rubric for space cadets to evaluate the validity
and reliability of their recorded URLs. Several star dates into the future,
students continue recording their prior knowledge (in their on-line journals)
of the solar system, asteroids, and what items and skills are necessary for
survival and creation of a survival habitat. At the end of the initial web
quest, students are assigned a mission should they choose to pass this class!
This quest opens with students making the decision to work alone, in pairs,
or in a triad. Students develop a plan to survive an impending cataclysmic
event by using their developed survival instincts. The Mission Commander exclaims:
"no more written instructions until your final models are produced along with
PowerPoint Presentation Explanations!" The students groan, grumble, and get
used-to-it as they have learned the survivor's creed "You get what you get,
and you don't pitch a fit!" After all, further consultations with the Mission
Commander are still possible through e-mail.

Time Travel & Developing the Brave New World

Students are viewing a video about the Biosphere Project in Arizona. Periodically,
the students stop-the-video to reflect and question the reason for combining
a series of biomes within one system. Students continue their research about
synthetic environments and continue to look for special survival aspects unique
to these surroundings. The Mission Commander asks: "How can a synthetic environment
be successfully created?" One student offers to share an article from Columbia
University. The overwhelming amount of information available on biomes forces
the students to form groups with similar interests. Students choose their
biome of interest and begin to investigate and create a representative diorama.
Part of the student biome team creates a PowerPoint presentation explaining
the advantages of that biome's features and possible advantages in an impending
cataclysmic event while the other part builds the scale model diorama. At
the end of two weeks, parents come to an evening presentation of student survival
habitats where the only audio is from the PowerPoint Presentation. Acquiring
medical survival skills is another important quest for the space cadets. Everyone
begins this section with certification in First Aid and CPR presented during
one week of class periods. Ride-along opportunities with emergency services
such as ambulance, fire, and police agencies take place on two different days.
These experiences expose students to emergency situations and the know-how
of these related services. Students keep a log of their experiences that they
incorporate into their on-line recordings. More credit points are given for
those completing theFirst Aid and CPR certification. Students create their
own survival expertise web site in the final web quest activity. They share
their knowledge in this project loosely categorized as "Survival A to Z in
the eyes of a sophomore." This project assesses their practical knowledge
of resources, skills, and decision-making processes related to sudden crisis.

Crash & Burn, Learn & Live

A presentation, Crash & Burn, Learn & Live Demonstration, forms the core
of the last two weeks in all three classrooms. Students create a diorama,
PowerPoint presentation, and/or simulation game to: embody their knowledge
of survival, show why government must find ways to assimilate those with different
values and beliefs, and point-out exemplary decision-making processes in their
model. In a final assessment, teams face a new crisis situation where their
previous learning experiences and expertise is called upon. Cumulative student
on-line journals are examined for evidence of growth in their decision-making
processes as well as to find out how they view what is important in a crisis
situation.